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. • 




















































































































































Monument to James Logan, Cayuga Chief, Fort Hill 

Auburn, N. Y. 


Cemetery, 


(Frontispiece.) 






































































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INDEX TO CHAPTERS. 


I. Preface . 3— 5 

II. Introduction. 6— 7 

III. Historical Evidence . 8—10 

IV. Birth and Parentage.11—13 

V. Early Life at Shamokin (Sunbury). . .14—16 

VI. A Great Tragedy..17—19 

VII. Disqualified as Vice-Gerent.20—22 

VIII. Good Indian .23—26 

IX. The Erring Brother...27—28 

X. The Price .29—30 

XI. The End .31—35 

Appendix A.36 

Appendix B.37 

Appendix C.38—10 


















■* •, 


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V 


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NOV 19 1915 




© Cl. A 414 7 01 



CAPTAIN LOGAN 

BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


A BIOGRAPHY 

-BY- 

HENRY W. SHOEMAKER 

(President of the Altoona Tribune) 



“ Unlike Logan, the Mingo Chief, Captain Logan, the Cayuga 
Chief, had no biographer to embellish the pages of history with his eloquence. 
Well may we say l The evil that men do lives after them, while the good is 
oft interred with their bones. ’ ’ ’ 

U. J. JONES' 11 History of the Juniata ValleyN 

ALTOONA, PENNSYLVANIA 
Published by the Altoona Tribune Publishing Company 
1915 


Copyright, all Rights Reserved. 





















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NOV 19 1915 


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Jesse Logan, Aged 106 Years, Only Surviving Grandson of 
Captain Logan. 



I. PREFACE. 


S EVERAL years have passed on before sufficient 
materials could be secured by the writer to piece 
together a biography of Captain Logan, the 
CayugaChief. In the beginning there seemed to be many 
insuperable difficulties, but these by research and the 
“good fortune” of history have one by one disappear¬ 
ed, and the clear and connected story revealed. That 
Blair County should have been the home and scene 
of many of the exploits of this noted Indian gives 
an added interest to this biography, at least to the 
compiler of these pages. The rocks and hills he hunt¬ 
ed over, the springs where he rested and tented, the 
spots where he trapped the British foe in Revolution¬ 
ary days, will all have a more poignant charm for his 
having been here. The sources of information for 
the preparation of this book have been two-fold, 
written and oral. The books consulted are Rupp's 
“History of Five Counties,” Meginness’ “Otzinach- 
son,” Mayer’s “Tah-gah-Jute or Logan,” Purdy’s 
“Legends of the Susquehanna,” Day’s “Historical 
Collections,” Bishop Cammerhoff’s “Journey to Sha- 
mokin, Pa., in 1748,” Edwin McMinn’s “On the Fron¬ 
tier with Colonel Antes,” Reichel’s “Memorials of the 
Moravian Church,” Stone’s “Life and Times of Red 
Jacket,” Dwight’s “Memoirs of Rev. David Brainerd,” 
Boyd’s “Indian Local Names,” Eshelman’s “Indians 
of Lancaster County,” Brunner’s “Indians of Berks 


3 


County,” Linn’s “Annals of Buffalo Vahey,” Jacob’s 
“Sketch of Cresap,” Walton’s “Conrad Weiser and 
The Colonial Policy of Pennsylvania,” Jefferson’s 
“Notes on Virginia,” Crantz’s “History of the United 
Brethren,” De Schweinitz’s “Life and Times of 
David Zeisberger,” Doddridge’s “Notes ;” also “Hand¬ 
book of American Indians,” “Frontier Forts 
of Pennsylvania,” “Pennsylvania Archives,” “Min¬ 
utes of the Provincial Council of Pennsylva¬ 
nia,” “Historical Map of Pennsylvania,” etc., etc., 
and last but not least, U. J. Jones’ immortal 
and monumental work, “History of the Juniata Val¬ 
ley.” Of oral sources were John Q. Dyce, (1830- 
1904), from whom the writer gained his first im¬ 
pressions of the Logan brothers; Thomas G. Simcox, 
(1840-1914), who was well acquainted with “Old 
Nichols,” an Indian from the reservation who was one 
of Captain Logan’s confidential friends in his latter 
days, and also of Captain Decker, who knew James 
Logan, the second son of Shikellemus, also Campbell 
Herritt, (1833—), John W. Crawford, (1831—), 
Robert C. Quiggle, (1830—), and John G. Knepley, 
(1837—), who was “Old Nichols’” intimate friend 
during his annual visits to the West Branch Valley, 
which continued until the death of Lis daughter, 
Shawana, in February, 1855. Information concerning 
the life and times of Captain Logan was also obtained 
from Jacob Quiggle, (1821-1911), who knew Peter 
Pentz, Jr., Isaac Steele, Captain Decker, and “Little 
Captain Logan,” Captain Logan’s son, and from C. W. 
Dickinson, (1842—), who was familiarly acquainted 


with Jim Jacobs, Tall Chief, Jake Faddy, the Shongos, 
the Jimmersons and other friends of Captain Logan 
and his son. Also much information was gained from 
Indians at the reservations in Warren County, Pa., and 
in New York. All helped to “piece together” the nar¬ 
rative for which the writer is extremely grateful. And 
to such historians as Mrs. Isaac M. Gross, of “Fort 
Augusta,” Mrs. S. B. Morrison, of Corydon, Dr. John 
W. Jordon, Librarian of the Historical Society of 
Pennsylvania, Rev. George P. Donehoo, of Couders- 
port, and J. Herbert Walker, of Lewisburg, for the 
elucidation of knotty problems, the writer is happy to 
express his sincere thankfulness. 

HENRY W. SHOEMAKER, 
Altoona Tijibune Office, July 28, 1915. 


A 




b 


II. INTRODUCTION. 


S O much has been written concerning James Lo¬ 
gan, the second son of the immortal Shikeile- 
mus, and styled the “greatest of Indian ora¬ 
tors,that it would seem only right and just to de¬ 
vote a few pages to the career of the oldest son 
John, or as he is better known, “Captain Logan.” 
This Indian, who inherited the vice-gerency of the 
Iroquois or Mingoes upon the death of his father on 
December 6, 1748, but was disqualified at the Council 
of the Chiefs because of physical disability, led a trag¬ 
ic life, one of disappointment and bitterness, yet to 
the end maintained a cheerful manner and a true 
friendship for the whites. His more noted brother 
has usurped the page of history and tradition, black¬ 
ened the family honor, been a “bad” Indian and the 
time has now come to state the facts plainly that there 
were two Logans. In these days when peace is held 
as a cherished ideal, the life of a man of peace will 
help to bolster up one’s faith in calmness, patience 
and fortitude. The ability to bear injustice, to palliate 
oppression, to condone misdeeds can only be held in 
hearts steeped with the full essence of Christianity. 
In today’s complex life such beings are fast becom¬ 
ing rarities. The men of the Old Testament, they of 
“an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth,” are the mod¬ 
els for conduct. Captain John Logan, aided only by 
Christianity of the most nebulous form, surrounded 


6 



Logan and His Great-Grand Nieces 




















































































































































































CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


7 


by schemers and oppressors, stands forth as one of the 
most Christian-like characters in the entire gamut of 
history. Overlooked by many writers because of his 
mildness, well-nigh consigned to the limbo of oblivion 
save for a few paragraphs in Jones’ “History of the 
Juniata Valley,” he deserves resuscitation to set a 
shining example to men, red and white, for ages to 
come. If General Sherman really said that “there is 
no good Indian except a dead Indian,” he must have 
been unaware of the life and peaceful deeds of Cap¬ 
tain Logan. No character in literature or history 
since Job was more persecuted than Shikellemus’ old¬ 
est son. Stripped of everything at the time of his 
death, he had only words of good will for his perse¬ 
cutors. But time has its victories. A more lawful 
age, in casting about for heroes of peace, will surely 
place the name of Captain Logan in its hall of fame. 
A more critical school of history, if unable to dis¬ 
prove Sherman’s words, will cite him as the exception 
to the rule. And travelers through the Logan Valley 
gazing over its undulating expanses, its fair streams, 
its background of towering mountains, will harken 
back to the noble redman whose name it bears. Time 
will give Captain Logan a pre-eminent place in writ¬ 
ten and oral history, just as it will soften its judg¬ 
ment of his persecuted, through rebellous brother, 
James Logan, the Tah-gah-Jute of history. 




III. HISTORICAL EVIDENCE. 

I N order that there may be no confusion on the sub¬ 
ject. the principal written statements of the sepa¬ 
rate existence of the two Logans will be given 
herewith. In the first place, Jones, in Chapter IX of 
“History of the Juniata Valley” states, “In the year 
1745, Shickalemy paid a visit to the old Chief Kishi- 
cokelas, for the purpose of adopting some conciliatory 
measures to prevent the Indians of the valley from 
committing depredations upon the settlers. On this 
occasion, he was accompanied by his sons, John and 
James Logan.” He further states that “Logan, the 
Mingo Chief, left Kishicoquillas Valley in 1771; 
while Captain Logan resided in the upper end of 
Huntingdon County at that time, and a few years 
afterwards in Logan’s Valley, in Blair County. When 
the Revolution broke out, he moved toward the moun¬ 
tain, in the neighborhood of Chickalacamoose, near 
what is now Clearfield. He served as a spy for the 
settlers, and rendered them valuable service. He was 
an Iroquois or Mingo Indian, too, and a chief; where¬ 
as Logan, the Mingo, was no chief until he moved 
to Ohio after his relatives were murdered and he took 
up the hatchet against the whites. This explanation 
is mecessary, because many people of Huntingdon and 
Blair Counties are under the impression that the Cap¬ 
tain Logan, who resided in Tuckahoe as late as 1785, 
and Logan, the Mingo Chief, were one and the same 



Logan in the Forest 






























■ 










CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


person.” In Chapter XXXIII of the same work the 
author names Captain Logan as being one of the last 
three Indians to remain in the Juniata Valley. In the 
“Handbook of American Indians,” Vol. II, under the 
heading, “Shikellamy,” in a paper contributed by Mr. 
James Mooney, of the Bureau of American Ethnolo¬ 
gy, it is stated as follows: “Shikellamy died Decem¬ 
ber 6, 1748. The Colonial government sent a message 
of condolence, with the usual presents to the family, 
and requested the eldest son, John or Thacknetoris 
(Taghneghdoarus) to serve as the Iroquois deputy 
governor until the Council at Onondaga could make 
a permanent appointment. Another son of Shikel¬ 
lamy was James Logan.” 

In “Memorials of the Moravian Church,” Vol I, 
edited by William C. Reichel is the following: “Shi¬ 
kellamy was succeeded in the Vice-Regency by his 
oldest son, Tachnachdoarus, 'Spreading Oak/ alias 
John Shikellamy. His second son was James Logan, 
named for Secretary Logan of Germantown. Logan 
was lame. John Petty was the youngest of the three 
brothers, and bore the name of an Indian trader. An¬ 
other son Jake is said to have been killed in the Indian 
wars.” Dr. John W. Jordan states that a fifth son was 
also killed in battle. Meginness, in his “Otzinachson,” 
says: “Shickalemy, the Cayuga Chief, had several sons, 
one of whom was 'Logan, the Mingo Chief/ and an¬ 
other named Taghneghdoarus, who assumed the du¬ 
ties of chief, after his death. He was the oldest.” 
Jones, further in Chapter XXXIII of his great work 




10 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


says: “Captain Logan formerly resided on the Sus¬ 
quehanna, where he was the captain of a brave band 
of warriors; but unfortunately, in some engagement 
with another tribe, he had an eye destroyed by an 
arrow from the enemy. This was considered a mark 
of disgrace, and he was deposed; and it was owing to 
that cause that he abandoned his tribe and took up 
his residence in the Juniata Valley.” And it was the 
* loss of the eye which deprived the Indians on the 
Susquehanna of a sagacious leader, and is the be¬ 
ginning of a career full of sadness and trouble, which 
the ensuing pages will strive to unfold 







The Century Old Archer 



IV. BIRTH AND PARENTAGE. 

T HE word Mingo so often used in connection 
with the Eogan brothers, but more particular¬ 
ly with James Logan, the orator, signifies those 
members of the Iroquois and cognate tribes which 
left the villages of the main body before 1750, and 
formed new settlements in Pennsylvania, on the Ohio 
and in the neighborhood of the Shawnee, Lenni-Le- 
nape and other tribes. Shikellemus more properly 
was a chief of the Cayugas, who in 1728 was sent by 
the Iroquois Council at Onondaga to the forks of the 
Susquehanna to look after the interests of the Six 
Nations in the Valley of the Susquehanna and keep 
watch over the tributary Shawnee and Lenni-Lenape 
Indians. He took up his abode on a small stream 
now known as Shikellamy’s Run, which flows into 
the West Branch about a mile below the present town 
of West Milton. His cabin stood on what is now 
the George Miller farm, near the old ferry. There 
Col. Conrad Weiser visited him in February, 1737. 
He remained there until 1745 when he was promoted 
to the full vice-gerency over the tributary tribes on 
the Susquehanna, and his residence fixed at Shamok- 
in, now Sunbury. Though some writers declare that 
he was a Frenchman, adopted by the Oneidas, Shi¬ 
kellemus always maintained that he was a Cayuga 
and a full blooded Indian. His wife, Neanoma, was 
a Oneida, and he married her in New York state a 


it 


12 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


dozen years before removing to Pennsylvania. Shi- 
kellemus was born at the foot of Owasco Lake, not 
far from the present city of Auburn, N. Y., in 1690. 
He was therefore a man of mature years and judg¬ 
ment when he took up his abode on the Susquehanna. 
Truman H. Purdy, author of “Legends of the Sus¬ 
quehanna’ is among the numerous writers who have 
stated that by his marriage Shikellemus became the 
father of one daughter and three sons. But in reality 
there were five boys. Of these, Captain John Logan, 
the eldest, or Tachnachdoarus, was born on Butternut 
Creek in New York State in 1718; James Logan, the 
second son, was two years younger, and was born in 
the same village. These lads did not receive the Lo¬ 
gan cognomens until after their father had brought 
them to Pennsylvania. Previous to that they were 
known as Tachnachdoarus (The Spreading Oak) and 
Tah-gah-jute, (The Beetling Browed), respectively. 
Both were described as handsome boys, erect, 
lithe, and perfectly formed. Reichel’s state¬ 
ment that James Logan was lame was evi¬ 
dently caused by the oft-repeated allusion to Cap¬ 
tain Logan’s blindness of one eye, which to the In¬ 
dians amounted to a deformity. Neanoma was stat¬ 
ed to be the most beautiful Indian woman of her day. 
Her father was said to have been a Dutch trader 
named Killian who became enamored with her mother, 
the daughter of a chief of the Oneidas. Shikellemus 
is described as “a short, stoutly built man,” and again 
“as being so solidly built that he did not look his 




CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


13 


six feet in height/’ His hair was said to be raven 
black, but his eyes were light grey. Coming from 
such parentage it is small wonder that Captain Lo¬ 
gan and his brother had light eyes, but their hair was 
jetty black. As boys they outstripped their playmates 
in feats of agility and strength, and as hunters ranked 
ahead of many of the older braves. 




V. EARLY LIFE AT SHAMOKIN (SUNBURY.) 


O N all sides Captain Logan has been described as 
a model of dutiful, homeloving son in contra¬ 
distinction to his brother James, who was 

from earliest youth a wanderer. Reichel relates that 
the great orator of later years was absent from Sha- 
mokin on one of his mysterious trips when his father 
passed away, and, returning a few days later, 
shed bitter tears over the bier on which lay 

the vice-gerent’s corpse attired in full warrior’s 

regalia. Not that James Logan was callous—far 
from it, he was a man of fine feeling, but he had 
few domestic qualities. On all sides it was ac¬ 

claimed that Captain Logan, the oldest son, would fol¬ 
low in the footsteps of his distinguished sire, and be 
a wise administrator and fearless leader. The old 
chief kept the youth at his side at all times, seeming¬ 
ly anxious to impart his store of knowledge and ex¬ 
perience to him. He entrusted him with many confi¬ 
dential missions to the white men and to the surround¬ 
ing tribes of Indians. Rupp in his “History of the 
Five Counties” states that “Jack” Logan, as he was af¬ 
fectionately called by some of the missionaries, was 
sent to deliver the murderers of Jack Armstrong, a 
trader who was killed in the Narrows in 1744, to the 
friends of the dead man. Dutiful as Captain Logan 
was, this must have been a painful task, Armstrong hav¬ 
ing injured him in days gone by, and to the average 


14 



A Last Glimpso of Logan 



























































































































CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


15 


“savage” there is no such thing as forgiveness. A 
word as to the identity of Armstrong. Some writers 
have confused him with “Black Jack” Schwartz, the 
“Wild Hunter of the Juniata,” who gave his name to 
the towering Jack’s Mountains. As Jack Armstrong 
was killed in 1744, and the “Wild Hunter” was alive 
as late as 1755, when his services as scout were re¬ 
fused by General Braddock, there seems to be no rea¬ 
son to imagine them one and the same person. As 
Captain Logan approached manhood he manifested a 
lively interest in the opposite sex. More gallant at 
all times than his brother James, this predilection was 
pleasing to old Shikellemus, who seemed anxious to 
perpetuate his race through his favorite son and heir. 
About 1738, both lads chose life partners, and the tra¬ 
dition is that they were married by a Roman Catholic 
Priest, (Father MacMahon), who in some way had 
strayed into the wild region. Captain Logan’s bride 
was like the wife of Shikellemus, noted fur her beauty, 
and like her a half-breed. She came from one of the 
dependent tribes of the Shawnees, and was called by 
the missionaries and traders Vastina. James Logan’s 
wife, Lyola, was a Mohican, and a niece of the cele¬ 
brated warrior, Captain Abraham. Six children were 
born to Captain Logan and his wife, while the home 
of James Logan was blessed with five little ones. In 
Bishop Cammerhoff’s “Journey to Shamokin, Pa., in 
1748,” under date of January 14, appears the follow¬ 
ing: “During the afternoon, with Bro. Mack, we 
visited Shikellemy and his family. Last autumn many 




16 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


of his family died, viz: his oldest son’s wife and five 
children, three of Logan’s children, and his son-in- 
law, and some of his children.” From this it will be 
seen that Captain Logan had suffered a great be¬ 
reavement, the fair Vastina and five of their six chil¬ 
dren had gone to the unknown country, “the land be¬ 
yond the mountains.” One child only, called “Little 
Logan” by the whites, and Tod-kah-dohs, or The 
Searcher by the Indians, survived this awful holo¬ 
caust. Though “Little Logan” lived on until 1844, 
dying at the age of 100 years, he was never robust, 
and of no great mental gifts. 


































































One of Captain Logan’s Descendants (Mary Pierce) With 
Chief’s War Club. 




VI. A GREAT TRAGEDY. 


I T is related that when Captain Logan went court¬ 
ing the fair Vastina she was living with her pa¬ 
rents not far from the site of Thomas McKee’s 
trading house on the Susquehanna. Her father was 
a Shawnee warrior, from the mouth of Pequea Creek, 
near the home of the Conestogas; her mother it is 
stated on good authority was a Quaker woman. The 
girl did not betray her Indian blood in her appearance, 
except that her hair was black; her olive complexion 
and hazel eyes might have been those of a European; 
her form was well rounded and shapely. While from 
the first Captain Logan was the favored suitor, there 
was another whose jealous eyes were cast on the 
beautiful girl. This was no less a person than Jack 
Armstrong, the trader. This man, who is said to have 
been no relation to the celebrated Colonel Armstrong, 
sold “fire water” to the redskins, helping to sow the 
seeds of their moral and physical decline. He was a 
mature man, whereas Captain Logan at that period 
was a youth in his teens. Armstrong was a good shot 
with the rifle, but also boasted of considerable prow¬ 
ess with the bow and arrow. One afternoon, an in¬ 
formal archery contest was held under some big wal¬ 
nut trees which lined the river bank near Vastina’s 
modest home. It is averred that among those present 
was the celebrated Colonel Conrad Weiser. It was 
about the year 1737. Armstrong executed some good 


17 


IS 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


shots at the target placed at 200 paces, but was out-shot 
by his savage rival, Captain Logan. Armstrong com¬ 
plained that the light, coming down through the trees 
hindered his sight. On hearing this, Captain Logan 
courteously ran forward to readjust the target which 
was nailed to one of the big trees. As he did so, one 
of Armstrong’s servants, who was holding his mas¬ 
ter’s bow and arrow quickly took aim and fired, the 
dart piercing one of Captain Logan’s eyes. The In¬ 
dian clapped his hand to his face, but could not pre¬ 
vent the injured optic from running, out. Armstrong 
was profuse in his apologies, berating the servant se¬ 
verely for his impetuosity, declaring that it was all a 
huge mistake. What thoughts passed through Captain 
Logan’s brain can best be conjectured. A disfigured 
Indian was disqualified to hold a chiefship, he was 
shunned by the women, looked upon as an outcast by 
his tribesmen. Like a wounded buffalo is forced out of 
the herd, he must h>e a pariah to the end of his days. 
Imagine therefore his surprise when the beautiful Vas- 
tina, who had been seated on the grass watching, the 
contest, got up, and running forward threw her arms 
about the blinded redskin. Leading him tenderly to 
a spring which welled up near the river bank, she 
bathed the damaged eye all the while caressing and 
kissing the unfortunate youth. With such a show of 
preference, Armstrong skulked away from the grove, 
but it is known that he afterwards entertained hatred 
both for Captain Logan and Vastina. The young 
couple were married shortly after, and lived happily 




CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


19 


until death dissolved their contract. Such was Vas- 
tina’s popularity among the Mingoes that her husband 
was better received than most disfigured redmen. She 
obtained for him a degree of recognition, and kept 
alive his father’s love which otherwise might have 
been transferred to his second son, James Logan. The 
bridegroom was beginning to “live down” his great 
tragedy when river fever cast its unholy shadow over 
the vice-regal camp, and in a few weeks destroyed the 
lives of the beautiful and devoted young wife and five 
of the six pretty children, as recorded in the previous 
chapter. 




VII. DISQUALIFIED AS VICE-GERENT. 

I N the handbook of American Indians, Vol. II, the 
death of Shikellemus is there described: "On 
his way to Shamokin, (after his conversion at 
Bethlehem), he fell ill of fever and ague at Tulpe- 
hocking, and had barely strength to reach his home. 
Zeisberger, who had returned tb his post, minis¬ 
tered to the stricken chieftain until his death, Dec.. 
6, 1748.* The colonial government sent a message of 
condolence, with the usual presents, to the family, and 
requested the eldest son of Shikellamy, John or Thach- 
nectoris (Taghneghdoarus) to serve as the Iroquois 
deputy governor until the council at Onondaga could 
make a permanent appointment.” Doubtless those in 
authority were not fully aware of Captain Logan’s dis¬ 
figurement, or they would have been more cautious 
in sending such a message. However, Colonel Weiser 
presented the message personally to the son-and- 
heir, at his meeting with him at the trading house of 
Thomas McKee, twenty miles below Shamokin, in 
April 1749. Weiser’s words are as follows: "I gave 
a string of Wampum to Taghneghdoarus, Shikel- 
lamy’s eldest son, and desired him to take upon him 
the care of a chief in the stead of his deceased father, 
and to be our true correspondent until there should 
be a meeting between the Governor of Pennsylvania 
and some of the Six Nation Chiefs, and confirm¬ 
ed, if he would follow the foot-steps of his deceased 


See Appendix A. 


20 





Oldest House in Cornplanter Reservation. Birthplace of Jim 

Jacobs, Indian Elk Hunter. 























CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


21 


father. He accepted thereof, and I sent a string of 
Wampum by Toganogon, (who was then setting out 
for Cayuckquo) to Onantogo to let the Council of 
the Six Nations know of Shikellamy’s death and my 
transaction by order of the Governor. There was a 
necessity for my doing so/’ This last sentence is sig¬ 
nificant. Weiser evidently hoped that in some way 
the loyal, intelligent and calm Captain Logan, 
despite his affliction, might be continued as Vice¬ 
gerent at Shamokin. James Logan was not wanted by 
the Proprietaries. Already he had shown acts of in¬ 
subordination, which later developed into downright 
treachery. But the hopes of the Government were in 
vain. According to Reichel, the Council of Chiefs pass¬ 
ed the vice-gerency on to the third son of Shilkellemus, 
John Petty, who, assuming the name of Shikellemy, 
held the position until the seat of Indian activities was 
removed to Kittanning and Logstown, about 1754. 
John Petty Shikellemy was not highly thought of, 
he was “tricky,” yet was more trustworthy than 
James Logan. By 1750 we find Captain Logan 
stripped of his official position, friendless, wife¬ 
less, and accompanied only by his surviving child, the 
puny “Little Logan,” locating in a humble cabin on 
the Juniata, far from the realm which was his to rule 
by right of birth. The historian Jones aptly describes 
his condition at that time in the following words: 
“The most prominent friendly Indian that ever resid¬ 
ed in the Juniata Valley was Captain Logan. He is 
represented as having been a noble and honorable In- 




22 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


dian, but like all Indians, revengeful in his character. 
A kindness and an insult alike remained indelibly 
stamped upon the book and page of his memory; and 
to make a suitable return for the former he would 
have laid down his life, shed the last drop of his 
heart’s blood. He was a man of medium height and 
heavy frame; notwithstanding which he was fleet of 
foot and ever on the move. He settled with his fam¬ 
ily in the little valley east of Martin Bell’s furnace, 
which is still known as Logan’s Valley. He had pre¬ 
viously resided on the Susquehanna, where he was 
captain of a brave band of warriors; but, unfortu¬ 
nately, in some engagement with another tribe he had 
an eye destroyed by an arrow from the enemy. This 
was considered a mark of disgrace, and he was de¬ 
posed; and it was owing to that cause that he aban¬ 
doned his tribe and took up his residence in the Ju¬ 
niata Valley. And it was there that he wrote his 
name indelibly into the valley’s history.” 























































































































Betsy O’Bail, or O’Boyle, Only Surviving Grand-daughter of 
Chief Cornplanter, With Stalk of Indian Tobacco. 





VIII. GOOD INDIAN. 


I F Captain Logan had been content to remain in 
his little hut near the site of Martin Bell’s Fur¬ 
nace, in what is now Logan Valley, all might have 
been well with him. He was beloved by all the 
white hunters and traders who came in contact with 
him, and game such as buffaloes, moose, elk, bears and 
deer abounded in the valley and on the high moun¬ 
tains, while the Little Juniata and its tributaries teem¬ 
ed with salmon, shad and trout. Jones, the faithful 
historian, has best described his reasons for his re¬ 
moval to another abiding place. “One day, while 
hunting, he happened to pass the beautiful spring 
near the mouth of the Bald Eagle—now in the heart 
of Tyrone City. The favorable location for both 
hunting and fishing, as well as the charming scenery, 
fascinated Logan; and he built himself a wigwam im¬ 
mediately above the Spring, to which he removed his 
family.” 'i his family consisted of his only sister 
(who later was murdered by Daniel Greathouse on 
the Ohio River), his son Little Logan, or The Search¬ 
er, and sometimes his youngest brother John Petty, 
who after 1754 divided part of his time between there 
and the cabin of his second brother James Logan, at 
the famous “Logan Spring” at Reedsville. At Ty¬ 
rone Captain Logan remained up to the outbreak of 
the Revolutionary War. In 1771, James Logan tired 
of the idealistic life at Reedsville and departed for 


24 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


the wilder regions of the Ohio. He tried to induce 
Captain Logan to accompany him, but he declined on 
the grounds that he loved his home and his white 
neighbors. But the winning personality of the “Min¬ 
go Chief’’ was too much for Captain Logan's sister 
and son, and for John Petty. They “pulled up stakes” 
and departed for the west, leaving Captain Logan to 
work out his destiny as best he could alone. One of 
Captain Logan’s most intimate friends at this time 
was John Kelly, a young pioneer who had in 1768 
moved from Lancaster County into Buffalo Valley. 
V ith him he hunted buffaloes on many occasions, 
scores of these noble beasts falling to their unerring 
bullets. In 1774 came the news of the foul murder of 
James Logan’s family by the white settlers.* It was 
hurtful to Captain Logan; he is said to have aged ten 
years on hearing it, but he refused to allow it to shake 
his faith in his white friends. The following year oc¬ 
curred James Logan’s famous visit to his brother’s 
cabin at the mouth of the Bald Eagle. The bereaved 
and maligned chieftain was regaling his older brother 
with the story of his woes, the cruel murder of his 
sister and brother, which Captain Logan steadfastly 
refused to believe was ordered by the government, 
when a messenger arrived warning James Logan that 
he must return west on pain of death, and informing 
Captain Logan that he would be liable to imprison¬ 
ment for harboring him. James Logan went sorrow¬ 
fully away in the night. Yet Captain Logan contin- 


• See Appendix B. 




CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


25 


ued to trust the white men around him. When the 
Revolutionary War broke out, Captain Logan es¬ 
poused the Patriot Cause. Jones in describing the 
worthy redman at this time says: “He lived at the 
mouth of Bald Eagle, during the Revolutionary War, 
not altogether inactive, for his sympathies were on 
the side of liberty. During that time he formed a 
strong attachment to Captain Ricketts of Warrior’s 
Mark, and they became fast friends. It was to Ricketts 
that Captain Logan first disclosed the plot of the Tor¬ 
ies under John Weston; and Edward Bell gave it as 
his firm conviction that Logan was among the In- 
dions who shot down Weston and his men on their 
arrival at Kittanning.” At this time, it was in the 
spring of 1778, Captain Logan was employed as a spy 
by Major Cluggage. Logan’s bravery was reported 
to General Washington by his old time friend and 
hunting companion, John Kelly, who had become a 
Colonel. At this time, Captain Logan began to hear 
of his brother’s savage reprisals in Ohio and Western 
Pennsylvania, and it almost broke his heart to think 
that the name of Logan should be steeped in so much 
innocent blood. He refused to accept any honors for 
his exploits against the Tories, and returned to his 
cabin where Tyrone City now stands. There, accord¬ 
ing to Jones, he found a very unsatisfactory state of 
affairs. We will again quote the noted historian on this 
point: “Although Logan had learned to read from 
the Moravian missionaries when quite a lad, he knew 
very little of the formula of land purchases; so he 






26 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


failed to make a regular purchase of the spot on which 
his cabin stood, the consequence of which was that 
after the war, some envious white man bought the 
land and warned the friendly savage off. Logan was 
too proud and haughty to contest -the matter, or even 
bandy words with the intruder; so he left and located 
at Chickalacamoose, where Clearfield now stands, on 
the West Branch of the Susquehanna.” It was a 
shabby return for patriot zeal, but Captain Logan’s 
primitive Christianity was used to being put to tests 
and triumphing. At Chickalacamoose the noble In¬ 
dian built himself a comfortable log-cabin near a fine 
spring. Soon after his arrival there he killed a mam¬ 
moth moose, the horns of which nailed above the cot¬ 
tage door, were a familiar land-mark. But the re¬ 
ports of James Logan’s revengeful conduct, especial¬ 
ly his drinking habits were too much for Captain 
Logan to bear. He must leave his new home on the 
West Branch and teach his savage brother the evil 
of his ways. Added to this sorrow came the news 
that his son, Little Captain Logan, as he was now call¬ 
ed, or Tod-kah-dohs, had taken to drinking and with 
his uncle, James, was participating in some frightful 
sprees. So with the firm conviction that he was do¬ 
ing right, Captain Logan after blazing the trees which 
bordered his property to make good his “tomahawk 
claim,” started for the West. 

















































































Monument to Chief Cornplanter at His Grave Near Corydon, 
Warren County, Erected by State of Pennsylvania, 1866, 
Showing Two of His Descendants, Jack Logan 
(at left) and Willie Gordon. 








IX. THE ERRING BROTHER. 


I N the Fall of 1779, when Captain Logan, after an 
eventful jdurney, reached his brother and son on 
the Holston River, he found them living anything 
but a decent life. On the way the anxious brother and 
parent had been shot at by Patriots who mistook him 
for an Indian in the British service, and carried a 
stiff arm as a result. James Logan and Little Cap¬ 
tain Logan refused to speak to him at first, thinking 
him a spy for the Patriots, and in the night when 
both were drunk, they threatened to kill him and 
throw his body into the river. But Captain Logan 
persisted, urging James Logan to lead a better life 
and be worthy of the traditions of his noble father 
and sainted mother. He pleaded with Tod-kah-dohs, 
for the sake of his dead mother, the beautiful Vasti- 
na, to stop drinking and come east to Chickalacamoose 
and be a reputable man and citizen. But th.e youth 
only laughed in his father’s face saying: “The whites 
struck out your eye, they could not keep you in pow¬ 
er as vice gerent, they would not let you entertain 
your own brother in your home, as a reward for your 
services in the war, they robbed you of your prop¬ 
erty, you are nobody, nothing, unworthy of following 
or belief.” Yet Captain Logan’s proud heart was not 
broken by this unfilial speech. Abused and taunted 
and made the witness of shocking scenes, including 
many beatings of James’s wife, the old Indian re¬ 
mained until in a moment of sobriety, Young Cap¬ 
tain Logan consented to accompany him back to 


27 


28 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


Chickalacamoose. He warned James Logan that un¬ 
less he stopped drinking, he would come to a bad end. 
“No worse than yours will be,” was the laconic reply. 
Captain Logan insisted that the Patriots would be 
victorious, that all Indians who committed atrocities 
for the British would suffer, that James should cease 
hostilities and retire to the wilderness until peace 
was declared. To which James Logan replied that 
“When the war would be over he would be dead, but 
while it lasted he would kill as many persons as he 
pleased.” Evidently the “Mingo Chief’ fancied that 
the war would last many years, or had a prophetic vis¬ 
ion of his own untimely end. The parting between 
the two sons of Shikellemus was not very affecting. 
James refused to shake his brother’s hand, but turned 
his back with a volley of profanity. It was all so 
strange to Captain Logan to see his brother so de¬ 
based, he seemed like “a great angel fallen,” but he 
comforted himself with the knowledge that rum had 
caused the breakdown. Liquor had made his wrong¬ 
ful accusation of Captain Cresap, his shielding of the 
guilty Greathouse, the rightful murderer of the Logan 
family, it had caused his frightful butcheries among 
women and children, his ill-usage of his own wife, his 
making a drunkard of his nephew, his treachery to the 
Patriots, his contempt for his loving brother, the turn¬ 
ing of a splendid human temple into a wretched char¬ 
nel house, marked for speedy death. Captain Logan 
forgave this and more, as he turned his head eastward, 
thankful to have his boy restored to him, and eager 
to again occupy his cozy cabin at Chickalacamoose. 











An Historic Structure Named for Captain Logan. 



















X. THE PRICE. 


A S the aged Cayuga Chieftain and his son ap¬ 
proached the “tomahawk claim” at Chickalaca- 
moose, they perceived smoke issuing from a 
new stone chimney in the familiar log-cabin. What 
could it mean? As they entered the clearing they no¬ 
ticed a red-headed woman and two little girls husking 
corn—Captain Logan’s crop. The woman, when she 
saw two Indians coming out of the woods, screamed 
and ran toward the cabin. Their shrieks drew the man 
of the house, a heavy looking individual with a long 
black beard, who rushed out of the door, with one hand 
throwing away his corncob pipe while he primed 
his flintlock with the other. If Captain Logan and 
his son had not—and contrary to their custom— 
thrown up their hands they would have been a couple 
of dead Indians. As it was, a parley ensued during 
which Logan attempted to prove himself the rightful 
owner of the premises, which he had quitted but four 
months previously. But the settler, a man named 
Earon, was firm, displaying a patent from the Penn 
family, signed, sealed and dated. The Indian was 
convinced that he had been only a squatter, but asked 
before departing for the moose horns which had 
adorned the lintel. “I’m sorry,” replied the settler, 
“but I had just finished sawing them into corn buskers 
when I heard my women folks shouting 'bloody mur¬ 
der.’ ” Tears came into old Captain Logan’s eyes, 
even his last trophy of the chase was gone from him. 
The pioneer pitied the old man, and asked him to 


29 


30 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


stay for supper, but the proud redskin declined the 
invitation. Turning away with his son, he re-entered 
the darkening forest, his heart heavy with grief. 
He did not have long to brood in silence, for he was 
brought to his senses by the angry voice of his son, 
who shouted, “So this is what you brought me east 
for—you have no home, you old vagabond, I’d much 
rather be with Uncle James, scalping and hunting, 
than here chasing a will o’ the wisp.” “We’ll have a 
home some day,” replied Captain Logan, but he could 
say no more, sobs choking his utterance. The two 
Logans camped for the night by Moose Creek, and 
at daybreak Tod-kah-dohs announced that he was 
starting west to join his Uncle James. Captain Logan 
let him go without a word, and the parting was al¬ 
most in silence. Left to himself, Captain Logan de¬ 
cided to return to the Juniata, where he bivouacked 
for a time in Riggle’s Gap. Meeting by chance his old 
admirer, Major Ricketts, he again enlisted with the 
Patriot forces as a spy. He was in the vicinity of 
Pittsburg when the news was brought to him that 
Tod-kah-dohs, shortly after rejoining James Logan 
near Detroit, had, in a drunken quarrel, slain his ill- 
starred uncle. The boy had escaped to the woods, 
and as Logan left no relatives except a much beaten-up 
widow, there was little chance of a “blood atonement.’ 
Captain Logan served until the close of the war, when 
some of his military friends without his knowledge 
sought to secure back for him his property at Tyrone 
City. But the influences possessed by the new owner 
were such that nothing came of the well-meant effort. 















































































































































































Thomas G. Simcox (1840-1914), Intimate Friend of Pennsylvania 

Indians. 




XI. THE END. 


F ROM the close of the war until 1785, Logan lived 
peacefully at Tuckahoe, on property owned by 
the Bell family, who had always befriended him. 
Then came the news that his son, under the title of 
“Captain Logan,” was living at the Cold Spring on the 
Allegheny Seneca Reservation. Paternal love was 
greater than all other instincts, and the old Indian 
started on foot for his son’s home. He stopped for a 
time at Chickalacamoose, where Earon, the settler, 
who owned his old “claim,” welcomed him and offered 
him asylum to the end of his days. But he preferred 
to journey on by easy stages, eventually reaching the 
Reservation. There he met an old-time friend, Captain 
Decker, the warrior who conducted him to the cabin of 
Tod-kah-dohs. Despite his forebodings, “Little Logan” 
greeted his father warmly, introducing him to his wife 
and several small children, who clung to their new¬ 
found grand-sire’s robes.* It was a happy moment for 
Captain Logan. “Little Logan,” who had married a 
sensible woman of the Senecas—a daughter of Chief 
Cornplanter—had stopped his drinking habits, and his 
whole nature seemed changed for the better. He invited 
his father to make himself at home, to end his days in 
his household. To this the old chief acquiesced, and 
from that time began the best days of his life. He 
became a basket maker, assisted the Quaker mission¬ 
aries, hoed garden, fished and hunted, trying in every 


* See Appendix C. 


31 


32 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


way to lead a useful life. In 1791 he removed to the 
Cornplanter reservation in Pennsylvania, to be near 
his old-time friend, the great chief of that name. 
Towards the close of every Summer, he would 
start on a “visiting trip,” his objective point being 
the Juniata Valley, where the Winters were milder 
than in the North. He invariably stopped a few 
days with Colonel Kelly, near Derrstown, now 
Lewisburg, sometimes accompanying him on an 
elk or buffalo hunt. And he always visited and 
grieved in silence over the graves of his parents, 
his wife, and his children in the Indian burying 
ground on the “cape,” near Sunbury. There is also 
a well-founded tradition that Shikellemus is buried on 
the Miller farm, otherwise called “Shikellamy’s Old 
Town,” near Milton. Then he would wend his way 
across the Chestnut Ridge, heading for the Juniata. He 
was well remembered by the older generations in 
New Berlin and Swinefordstown, which towns he in¬ 
variably passed through. And here we will once more 
quote the historian Jones : “Captain Logan continued 
visiting the Juniata Valley, and especially when any of 
his friends among the pioneers died. On such occasions 
he generally discarded his red and blue eagle-feathers, 
and appeared in a plain suit of citizen’s clothes. But 
at length Logan came no more. The Great Spirit 
called him to a happier hunting-ground; and all that 
is mortal of him—unless his remains have been ruth¬ 
lessly torn from the bosom of mother earth, lies be¬ 
neath the sod, near the mouth of Chickalacamoose 
















































































Photograph by IRA J. STOUFFER, Altoona, Pa. 




CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


33 


Creek.” This coincides with the tradition that in the 
Spring of 1820 he was on his way northward, night 
overtaking him at the home of a family named Smith 
near Clearfield. He passed away peacefully at mid¬ 
night, of no apparent cause except old age, in his 
one hundred and second year. There is also the story 
that he died on the reservation, and is buried near the 
grave of Blacksnake at Red House. A third tradition 
gives his grave near that of Cornplanter, at Ga- 
wango. His son, Tod-kah-dohs, survived him many 
years, dying on the Alleghany reservation in 1844, 
in the one hundredth year of his age. He 
left descendants, so that it cannot be said, “The blood 
of Logan flows not in any man.” This ended 
the career of an Indian Chief—Blair County’s 
Indian Chief—a career unique in the annals of 
the redmen. During his life of a century or more 
he never drew his knife or bow against any man red 
or white, except for a just cause. He shed no human 
blood, except that of the Tory spies and renegades, 
who would have destroyed still-born the liberty of the 
Colonies. His influence was always exerted for moral 
betterment, for liberty, for justice, and above all for 
peace. Though a constant sufferer through man’s in¬ 
justice, and especially from white men, he always 
“turned the other cheek”—no rancor, no hate, no spite 
ever ruffled the calmness of his spirit. He was ever 
ready to forgive and to forget, to make friendships, to 
disarm rivalries. His supreme belief was that through 
doing good, happiness alone would come. That hap- 




34 


CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


piness he found in his heart even if his outward life 
brought him many tears. Though baptized by the Mo¬ 
ravians, and married by the Roman Catholic faith to 
a Quaker wife, his last days, like those of his friend, 
Red Jacket, were spent in the so-called Paganism of 
his fathers; though the Quaker missionaries consider¬ 
ed him their greatest helper among his race. But 
whatever his religious tendencies, his faith was bigger 
and broader than any church, it consisted in “doing 
good”—a sublime creed for any man, savage or civil¬ 
ized. Captain Logan, the Indian who never led an 
army of rapine, who had few scalps on his belt, few 
notches on his gun, who worked for peace, who for¬ 
gave his enemies, and who died at peace with all man¬ 
kind, looms big in the list of distinguished American 
aborigines. And in these days when the World is 
disgusted with War Lords, and princes of pillage 
and disaster, the quiet, calm, friendly figure of Cap¬ 
tain Logan very closely approaches the ideal set down 
by the Prince of Peace. In the beautiful Fort Hill 
Cemetery at Auburn, N. Y., not many miles from the 
banks of Lake Cayuga, where the Logan brothers 
first saw the light of day coining over the forest-clad 
headlands, stands a handsome monument to the war¬ 
rior son of Shikellemus, James Logan, or Tah-gah- 
jute. In the beautiful Logan Valley, on some quiet 
hillside above the “Blue Juniata,” and backed by the 
towering massif of the Allegheny Range would be a 
fitting place for a handsome monument to the peace- 
loving son of Shikellemus, Captain Logan, or Tach- 





Captain Logan’s Spring in Heart of City of Tyrone, Blair County. 
























































































. 

■ 






























































. 



















CAPTAIN LOGAN, BLAIR COUNTY’S INDIAN CHIEF 


35 


nachdoarus. The presence of such a monument would 
be a spiritual inspiration to the busy workers who now 
make the valley hum with their industry, to the mil¬ 
lions of travellers who follow the “iron horse” in the 
sumptuous trains of the Pennsylvania Railroad which 
thunder east and west. The name of Captain Logan, 
and all he stood for, should impress itself on young 
and old, and in such a way that when travellers would 
ask “Who’s Captain Logan?” the reply would come, 
“He was a good Indian, a man of peace, a redskin who 
ever kept off the war-path.” And when that monu¬ 
ment is dedicated it will be another of the triumphs 
of peace—honorable peace—the only kind of peace 
that counts, for that was the peace of Captain Logan. 
And if ghosts do walk, the spirit of Captain Logan 
will brood over the valley which bears his name, even 
more than it does now, bringing happiness, love and 
prosperity, the spiritual offspring of peace. “Peace 
hath its victories” and after all they are the most last¬ 
ing, and immortal is the name of Captain Logan. 




APPENDIX A 

(Inscription placed on monument erected to Shi- 
kellemus, father of Captain Logan, at Sunbury, for¬ 
merly Shamokin). From Daily Item, Sunbury, Penn¬ 
sylvania : 

MEMORIAL CALLS SHIKELLAMY DIPLOMAT AND 
STATESMAN. 

The grass at the base of the boulder erected by 
Fort Augusta Chapter, D. A. R., at the bend of the 
river where the north and west branches meet, has 
been worn away by many feet of persons, who have 
stepped close to read the inscription on the bronze 
tablet recently placed on the boulder. 

The stone itself, rough hewn and massive, stands 
over five feet in height and is three feet square. The 
tablet is in the form of a keystone nearly two feet in 
length, which is embedded in the surface of the stone. 

On the top is embossed the coat of arms of Pennsyl¬ 
vania. 

The inscription below is as follows: 

ERECTED AS A MEMORIAL 
TO 

SHIKELLAMY, ALSO SWATANEY, “OUR ENLIGHTENER,” 
THE REPRESENTATIVE OF SIX NATIONS 
IN THIS PROVINCE. 

FIRST SENT TO SHAMOKIN (SUNBURY) IN 1728. 

APPOINTED VICE-GERENT IN 1745. DIED DEC. 6, 1748. 

HE WAS BURIED NEAR THIS SPOT. 

THIS DIPLOMAT AND STATESMAN WAS A FIRM FRIEND 
OF THE PROVINCE OF PENNSYLVANIA. 

ERECTED BY THE FORT AUGUSTA CHAPTER, D. A. R., 
IN CO-OPERATION WITH THE 
PENNSYLVANIA HISTORICAL COMMISSION 
JUNE, 1915. 

(DEDICATED, OCT. 15, 1915.) 

36 








Dr. Owen Jacobs 
Descendants of 


(at right) and son Ezra (late of U. S. A.) 
Captain Jacobs, of Fort Kittanning Fame. 









APPENDIX B 


Speech of James Logan, brother of Captain Logan, 
delivered in November, 1774, said by Doddridge to be 
“The Finest Morsel of Indian Eloquence”: 

“I appeal to any white man to say if ever he en¬ 
tered Logan’s cabin hungry, and he gave him not 
meat; if ever he came cold and naked, and he clothed 
him not. During the course of the last long and bloody 
war, Logan remained idle in his cabin, an advocate for 
peace. Such was my love for the whites that my 
countrymen pointed as they passed, and said, ‘Logan 
is the friend of the white men.’ I had even thought to 
have lived with you, but for the injuries of one man. 
Col. Cresap, the last spring, in cold blood, and unpro¬ 
voked, murdered all the relations of Logan, not even 
sparing my women and children. There runs not a 
drop of my blood in the veins of any living creature. 
This called on me for revenge. I have sought it; I 
have killed many; I have fully glutted my vengeance. 
For my country I rejoice at the beams of peace; but 
do not harbor a thought that mine is the joy of fear. 
Logan never felt fear. He will not turn on his heel 
to save his life. Who is there to mourn for Logan? 
Not one!” 


& 


37 


APPENDIX C. 


Statement of Jesse Logan, Aged 106 Years. 

“I was born on the west bank of the Alleghany 
River, in the Cornplanter reservation, in 1809, the 
same year as Abraham Lincoln. My father was John 
Logan, Jr., a Cayuga, the only surviving child of 
Captain John Logan, the oldest son of Shikellemy. 
My mother was a daughter of the Seneca chief Corn- 
planter. My father, after retiring from the warpath, 
settled at Cold Spring, in the Allegheny reservation, 
in New York State, where he died in 1844, aged 100 
years. Early in life he married Annie, a daughter of 
Cornplanter, who bore him five children, three daugh¬ 
ters and two sons. The last were named Lyman and 
Jesse. When my grandfather was old he came to this 
reservation, where he lived with my father until his 
death. To the best of my knowledge, he died in this 
reservation, and is buried near the grave of Chief Corn- 
planter. I married Susan, a Seneca maid, and we had 
one child, James Logan, who died at the age of thirty. 
He was named for my great-uncle, the immortal 
Cayuga orator. Physically, my father and my son 
were small men, much smaller than my grandfather 
or my great-uncle. I took after my grandfathers, 
as I am of large stature. I remember Cornplanter, my 
maternal grandfather, very well. He was a large, 
strong man, not dark in color, and with gray eyes. 
He was a great man for work. Every morning, win¬ 
ter or summer, rain or shine, at six o’clock he would 


38 




Captain Logan’s Favorite Spring Near Bell’s Old Furnace. 



















































































come out of his house and ring a big dinner bell as a 
signal for all to get busy. He wore a red cap much 
the same as the white hunters do now. I remember 
Philip Tomb, the great elk and panther hunter, who 
lived a mile up the river. I hunted elks with the 
famous Jim Jacobs many times. I was taught to hunt 
by my grandfather, who died about 1820. He was 
a very old man when I was very young, but I recall 
what he looked like. I killed hundreds of elks, many 
bears and deer, and quite a few panthers, the last 
in 1860. I have always been fond of sport. I walk 
two miles to town (Corydon) every time there is 
a baseball game. As a boy I excelled at the Indian 
games of long ball and snow snake. I love a joke 
and enjoy a good dinner. I use tobacco and liquor 
sparingly. I attribute my long life to my love of out¬ 
door exercise and hunting and fishing. In my old age 
I am well cared for by my Indian friends, but I regret 
that “my blood flows not in any living person,” to use 
the language of my great-uncle James. There are 
many Logans in the reservations in Pennsylvania and 
New York; some are descended from my brother and 
sisters, others adopted the name because of the honor 
attached to it. I wish that I had been invited to attend 
the unveiling of my great-grandfather’s (Shikellemy’s) 
monument in Sunbury next week, but I guess that the 
world has forgotten Logan. I tried to fight for the 
white men in the Civil War, but when I got to Harris¬ 
burg I was sent back as too old. But I was a dead 
shot, and can still beat men one-quarter of my age 
with the gun and bow and arrow. Next summer, if I 


39 


live, I hope to be able to visit the Logan Valley, where 
my grandfather resided, and view the scenes that my 
father loved to talk about. I would also like to visit 
Mrs. Gross, at “Fort Augusta,” who has done so much 
to honor Shikellemy’s memory. I have lived a long 
while, but I am not tired of life, and each day seems 
new and pleasant to me.” 

Corn PLAN ter Reservation, Pennsylvania, Octo¬ 
ber 9, 1915. 


40 
































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































• • t' . • • 
















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